Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Iran: Human Rights

lord carlile of berriew: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conduct of the government of Iran following the arrest of students Ali Younesi, Amir Hossein Moradi and 18 other individuals who expressed their objection to the policies of that government; and what representations they intend to make to the government of Iran about human rights breaches.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Iran's human rights record continues to be of serious concern to the UK. We remain deeply concerned by Iran's failure to uphold its international legal obligations. Many citizens have been arrested on unclear charges, arbitrarily detained and denied due process, all contrary to international human rights law.We regularly express our human rights concerns to the Iranian authorities and we continue to take action both bilaterally and with the international community, to press Iran to improve its poor human rights record.

George Floyd

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the death of George Floyd.

baroness sugg: The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have been clear that the death of George Floyd was appalling, inexcusable and deeply distressing. We are aware that a suspect has been charged and there is a federal review underway. We would hope and expect justice to be done.The violence we have seen is clearly very alarming. People must be allowed to protest peacefully - peaceful protest remains a vital part of a democratic society and we understand the strength of feeling around this issue.

Palestinians: Recognition of States

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 19 May (HL3850), what (1) conditions they require to have been met before they recognise Palestine as a state; and (2) what steps they are taking to support Palestine to meet those conditions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: As I made clear in my answer of 19 May 2020 (HL3850), the UK will recognise a Palestinian state at a time when it best serves the objective of peace. Bilateral recognition in itself cannot end the occupation. Without a negotiated settlement the occupation and the problems that come with it will continue. The UK will continue to support a negotiated settlement leading to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

Israel: Geneva Conventions

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage the government of Israel to ensure that it meets the obligations of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the government of Israel meets the obligations of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We repeatedly call on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law and have a regular dialogue with Israel on legal issues relating to the occupation.

Israel: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conditions any Palestinian children who are being detained in Israel without a conviction are living in during the COVID-19 pandemic; and what steps they are taking to ensure that any such children are treated in line with international law and agreements.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We remain concerned by the impact that COVID-19 could have on Palestinian detainees, including children. We continue to make representations to the Israeli authorities to take steps which will reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading in prisons whilst simultaneously respecting fundamental human rights.

West Bank: Agriculture and Water

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel about reports of the destruction of livestock pens and waterlines belonging to the al-Ras al-Ahmar and al-Baq’a Bedouin communities in the northern Jordan Valley.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: While we have not made representations on these reports, we urge both sides to avoid taking actions which make peace more difficult to achieve. In all but the most exceptional of circumstances demolitions are contrary to International Humanitarian Law. The practice causes unnecessary suffering to ordinary Palestinians and is harmful to the peace process.

Department for Education

Pupils: Coronavirus

lord judd: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pupils attending illegal, unregistered schools.

baroness berridge: Ofsted continues to investigate potential illegal schools including consideration of new intelligence. Where appropriate, Ofsted have liaised with local authorities and other statutory bodies to consider whether there is appropriate action that should be taken, for example, to close settings where people are gathering illegally during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoners: Coronavirus

the lord bishop of rochester: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many prisoners(1) have displayed, or (2)are currently displaying, symptoms of COVID-19; and of those, (a) how many, and (b) what proportion, have been tested. [T]

lord keen of elie: As of Friday, 29 May our management information shows that there were 162 prisoners currently showing symptoms of Covid-19. Of those, 85 (52%) had been tested. Our records show that a further 3450 prisoners had previously displayed symptoms of Covid-19 where cases are now closed. Of those, 1447 (or 42%) had been tested. Tests are conducted on symptomatic prisoners on site, as directed and advised by PHE. The testing capacity and availability is dependent on local commissioning services, therefore the numbers of those tested varies by establishment. This means that the total number of cases at any establishment can include clinically diagnosed but untested cases, as well as those who have a confirmed COVID-19 positive result.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Property Development: Isle of Dogs

lord adonis: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government was made aware that the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government met Richard Desmond in November 2019 prior to theDepartment's decisions in respect of the Northern and Shell Corporation’s planning application for the development of Westferry Printworks. [T]

lord adonis: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government informed the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government of his previous contacts with (1) Richard Desmond, and (2) executives of the Northern and Shell Corporation, prior to the Department's decisions in respect of the Northern and Shell Corporation in the past year; and if so, what action was taken in response.

lord greenhalgh: Planning Ministers act in accordance with the MHCLG Guidance on Planning Proprietary Issues. This guidance is published (attached) on gov.uk and is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/5998/2091742.pdf 



Guidance on Planning Proprietary
(PDF Document, 66.08 KB)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill

lord randall of uxbridge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of theAnimal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill 2019–21 sponsored by the Member of Parliament for West Dorset.

lord goldsmith of richmond park: The Government is supporting the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Bill as it makes its way through Parliament. The Bill will increase the maximum custodial penalty for animal cruelty from 6 months’ imprisonment to 5 years’ imprisonment. The new maximum penalty of five years is in line with campaigns by key stakeholders such as Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Dogs Trust and the RSPCA. This is a positive step forward in improving animal welfare and will act as a serious deterrent against cruelty and neglect. Northern Ireland has already set the maximum penalty for animal cruelty offences at five years’ imprisonment, and the Scottish Government introduced the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Bill on 30 September 2019. The Welsh Government have confirmed that the new maximum penalty being proposed should apply in Wales. The increase to five years' imprisonment will provide one of the toughest sanctions in Europe, strengthening the UK's position as a global leader on animal welfare. This builds on recent positive action the Government has taken to improve animal welfare standards, such as a requirement for CCTV in all slaughterhouses and implementing one of the world's toughest ivory bans. For companion animals, we have introduced new updated minimum welfare standards for pet selling, dog breeding, riding schools, animal boarding and exhibiting animals; as well as a ban on the commercial third-party sale of puppies and kittens.

Home Office

Video Conferencing: Offences Against Children

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Zoom about protecting children and young people from incidents of video calls being interrupted by anonymous users to display images of child abuse.

baroness williams of trafford: There has been a sharp increase in the use of online conferencing tools during the pandemic. The Government is aware of incidents of ‘zoombombing’. This is the unauthorised intrusion of individual/s into Zoom calls, on occasions accompanied by the sharing of explicit material and perpetrated by those taking advantage of meetings that are either not secured via a password or where the password has been widely shared.There is an ongoing criminal investigation and we are working to ensure best practice on how to configure these applications is shared as widely as possible.NCSC has published advice and encourages the public to use passcodes and only share them privately, to ensure online meetings are safe.

Immigrants: Detainees

the lord bishop of gloucester: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many residents of immigration removal centres (1) have displayed, or (2) are currently displaying, symptoms of COVID-19; and of those, how many have been tested. [T]

baroness williams of trafford: The safety and health of people in the detention estate are of the utmost importance. We are following all Public Health England guidance and have robust contingency plans in place. All immigration removal centres have dedicated health facilities run by doctors and nurses which are managed by the NHS or appropriate providers. The Home Office, its suppliers and NHS England healthcare providers in immigration removal centres are following PHE guidelines for the management of COVID-19. Universal testing is not currently recommended under these guidelines for those in detention or those being released. Testing of individuals in immigration detention will be dependent on individual circumstances. To reduce the risk of COVID-19 in IRCs, all centres are following a reverse cohorting process which commenced on 20 April 2020. This requires new arrivals to be isolated from the main population for a period of 14 days to verify that each individual is asymptomatic. If a detainee shows symptoms during this time, they are be moved to protective isolation for seven days. As of 3 June 2020, there are no cases of COVID-19 in immigration removal centres.There have been two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in detainees, a third individual was identified but after his release from detention had been agreed. Local management information indicates that for the period 9 March to 31 May 2020, fifty-seven detainees have been placed in protective isolation for displaying COVID-19 or flu-like symptoms. There is currently one detainee in protective isolation after showing symptoms of COVID-19. Historic information on the number of COVID-19 tests conducted in IRCs is not held.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Music: Coronavirus

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether live music venues that cannot comply with physical distancing and therefore have no income will continue to be supported for the duration of physical distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.

baroness barran: We continue to work closely with the live music sector to understand the impact of Covid-19 on their activities and provide the necessary support.We have announced unprecedented support for business and workers to protect them against the current economic emergency. Support packages have been improved upon and further have been introduced as a result of continued sector engagement with Government, including: the introduction of the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, which has benefited businesses unable to access CBILS; the removal of a rateable value link for business rates relief for all eligible properties in the retail, hospitality and leisure sector; and the extension of the CBILS so that all viable small businesses affected by COVID-19, and not just those unable to secure regular commercial financing, will now be eligible should they need finance to keep operating during this difficult time.

5G: Huawei

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to review the involvement of Huawei in developing the UK's 5G infrastructure.

baroness barran: The final conclusions of the Government’s Telecoms Supply Chain Review in relation to high risk vendors were announced on 28 January. The Government has been clear, however, that as risks, threats and technology changes we need to keep the position under review. On the 15th May the US Department of Commerce announced that they were taking further action against Huawei. The National Cyber Security Centre is considering what the impact of the US sanctions might be.

Theatres: Coronavirus

lord randall of uxbridge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide support to the theatre sector following the COVID-19 pandemic.

baroness barran: The Government will continue to support theatres through the unprecedented financial measures we have announced. DCMS has also worked closely with its arm’s-length bodies to deliver tailored support packages at speed, including the £160m Emergency Funding Package announced by Arts Council England, made possible by Government funding. Alongside this, DCMS continues to engage with the sector extensively in order to best understand the challenges faced. We are working closely with the Arts Council to consider the additional support that may be needed to support the long-term recovery of the cultural sector, including theatres.

Swimming Pools: Safety

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures will need to be put in place before swimming pool operators can provide a safe environment to reopen.

baroness barran: Swimming plays a crucial role in supporting people to be active and the Government is committed to reopening facilities, including swimming pools, as soon as it is safe to do so. We are holding regular discussions with representatives from the leisure sector to develop guidance for swimming pool operators, as well as other facility operators, to support them to open their facilities in a timely and safe manner once lockdown measures are eased. As with all aspects of the Government’s response to Covid-19, we will be guided by the science to ensure that as restrictions are eased people can return to activity safely.